26.4 Using Extended Attributes (xAttr) Commands

In OES SP2 and later, NSS supports the Linux extended attributes (XAttr) option that allows listing, saving, and restoring the trustee information that is stored in the netware.metadata extended attribute. Third-party backup software that supports the standard Linux Extended Attributes (xattr) can use this feature for NSS volumes to preserve trustees, trustee rights, file attributes, and quotas in backup and restore.

The NSS switch, ListXattrNWMetadata, that helps to retrieve the list of attribute names is disabled by default. To enable it, you must set the following switches:

nss /ListXattrNWMetadata
nss /CtimeIsMetadataModTime

If you issue the commands from the command line, the support is automatically disabled at the next server reboot. You can enable the support for Linux xattr across server reboots by adding the switches to the /etc/opt/novell/nss/nssstart.cfg file.

Using NSSCON

To enable the Linux xattr list support for all NSS volumes on the server, enter

nss /ListXattrNWMetadata
nss /CtimeIsMetadataModTime

The commands are enabled until the next server reboot. You can also issue commands that disable the support.

Using the nssstart.cfg File

You can enable the support for Linux xattr list across server reboots by adding the following lines to the /etc/opt/novell/nss/nssstart.cfg file:

/ListXattrNWMetadata
/CtimeIsMetadataModTime

Make sure the switches are spelled correctly, and do not have spaces after the forward slash (/). If the switch names are entered incorrectly in the nssstart.cfg file, parsing errors can prevent the NSS pool from mounting.

Using NSSCON

To disable the Linux xattr list support for all NSS volumes on the server, enter

nss /noListXattrNWMetadata
nss /noCtimeIsMetadataModTime

Using the nssstart.cfg File

If you added the switches to the /etc/opt/novell/nss/nssstart.cfg file, and you want the support for Linux xattr list to be automatically disabled after a server reboot, remove the switches from the file. When the server reboots, the Linux xattr list support is disabled, which is the default behavior.